


You and me, that makes three

by romwaeta (orphan_account)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: BAMF Keith, Blood, Branding, Electrocution, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, I’m not sorry, Oops, Pidge Angst, Pidge Whump, Possible Triggering Content, Sendak is a Dick, Stabbing, broken fingers, hallucinating drug, keith is a good friend ok, pidge centric, pidge tortured, shiro’s space dad, slicing, the rack torture kinda
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-03
Packaged: 2021-02-23 14:17:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23979370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/romwaeta
Summary: Pidge, Hunk, and Lance get captured.When Sendak comes to take one of them away for questioning, Pidge is the only one awake. She takes their place, allowing herself to be tortured in place of the others.Little did they know that the screams echoing through the prison belonged to none other than their Green Paladin.
Relationships: Hunk & Lance (Voltron), Hunk & Pidge | Katie Holt, Keith & Pidge | Katie Holt, Lance & Pidge | Katie Holt
Comments: 5
Kudos: 89





	You and me, that makes three

Ringing. 

There was a distance ringing that echoed through the dampened silence that she couldn’t press her finger on.

Her tongue felt thick and heavy in her mouth, her limbs behind her with a cold sensation washing over her nerves.

It didn’t hurt, but nor did it feel right. Light trickled into her vision, and she grew aware of the ache thundering in her shoulders, knees, and chest.

She blinked.

The ringing continued as the lights protruded into her line of sight, creating the final picture before her.

Pidge was tired, undoubtedly so. She felt heavy, but her surroundings screamed at her. She could not rest, not now. She was in a small room, hands chained behind her back and clamped to the wall, her ankles suffering the same fate. 

Next to her, Hunk was unconscious and had his hands cuffed in front of him, meanwhile a singular shackle was attached to his ankle, bolted to the metal ground.

On her left, Lance was crumpled against the panel with his hands chained to the wall. 

The door slid open, and she wrinkled her nose as Sendak entered. He stood tall, and she'd be lying if she said she wasn’t the least bit intimidated.

“Paladins of Voltron,” he smirked, eyes tracing over the three paladins in the cell. She swallowed back against the dryness in her mouth, struggling to formulate words. “It looks like you’re the only one with us, child,”

“Leave us alone,” she spat finally, shocking herself with how scared she sounded. 

“I have no such plans, little one,” Sendak huffed, nodding towards the guards that flanked him. “Take the blue one,”

“No!” She screamed, jolting forward. If she had not been so heavily restrained, she would have been at this man’s throat already. Pidge breathed heavily, looking around her surroundings for anything she could use to her advantage. “Don’t hurt him,”

“You want me to hurt you instead, insolent paladin?” The Galran cracked an evil grin. She bit her lip, looking back at Lance’s unconscious form.

“Yes,” she spoke, her voice barely louder than a whisper. “Take me instead, do whatever you want- just don’t hurt him- either of them,” 

“She seems like a fun one,” a gravelly voice behind the tall man mused, and Pidge shuffled in her cuffs. “Remove her restraints and bring her to my chambers,” 

Pidge kicked against the guard coming her way, but halted when a gun was pointed at the blue paladin. The chains fell to the ground with a metallic clang, and two sets of arms wrapped around her wrists.

She was hoisted upwards, high enough that her feet could no longer reach the ground. Her eyes scanned the hallways she was carried through- they all had the same mundane gray walls, purple fluorescent lights illuminating every crevice. 

It was causing the ringing in her head to pummel her skull. Pidge groaned, and attempted to shift in the sentries’ grip, to no avail. Instead she opted to close her eyes- a decision she knew she would most likely regret, but at the moment was the best option for her sanity.

She kept them closed as she was unceremoniously tossed forced onto a stiff table. Her hands were pushed into cuffs above her head while her kicking legs were held down and strapped to the metal.

“Green Paladin,” Sendak growled, clawing his hand down her shoulder ever so gently. She glared with as much intensity as she could muster. “It’s impressive that you’re willing to put yourself in the place of your comrades,” 

“Oh, please,” Pidge scoffed. “He’s Lance, you wouldn’t get anything from him, so leave him out of it,” she spat.

“You’d do anything to protect the others, wouldn’t you?” He grinned with malice. Pidge continued to struggle against her restraints. “It’s a pity, teamwork may be your greatest strength, but it is also your greatest weakness,”

And on that note, all of Pidge’s senses were filled with pain as purple lightning shot towards her, engulfing her small body in white fire. She bit her tongue, refusing to give in to the pain.

She failed the second she let out an echoing scream.

She was panting, her back arching as it finally ended. She slumped against the table, shaking with an occasional twitch. 

“Your screams bring me satisfaction,” the commander nodded, picking up a sharp blade. With the flat end up, he lifted her chin from her hunched position.

Their eyes met, and Pidge tried with all of her might to be brave.

“We’re going to break you, little Paladin,” he mused, dragging the blade’s edges down her throat and chest, ending right over her heart. “You will be broken. You will be on your knees, your crimson blood pouring at my feet as you bow to me,” 

“Never,” she hissed through her clenched teeth, bracing for another shock from the druid. Instead, Sendak reached for her hand. 

“Where is the Castle of Lions?” He demanded.

“I’ll never tell you, dickface,” she angrily spewed, squirming against the board for added effect.

Within seconds, he had brought the hilt of his blade down on her thumb, eliciting a strangled scream from the girl.

“Do you have another answer?”

No. No she didn’t. She couldn’t.

Again.

She screamed.

She refused to respond, it would only lead to the harm of the others and she could not risk that. The others held too much importance, and she was certain that they’d be rescued soon.

The hilt was brought down again, and Pidge could only yell in response. 

And it continued. Her answer remained the same. And it hurt.

“You really keep thinking you’ll get a different answer, huh,” Pidge groaned. “Newsflash- it isn’t going to happen,”

“In that case, go get the blue paladin. We have two others, so one death will not affect us too severely,” Sendak told the guards. They walked towards the door, and it opened.

“Wait!” Pidge hollered, bucking against the cuffs holding her down. “Wait! I’ll- I’ll tell you! Don’t hurt him, please-“ 

“Where is the Castle of Lions, little one?” He blearily spoke, swinging the blade around carelessly.

“It’s… it’s on Olkarion, near the city,” she mumbled, shifting uncomfortably in her position. Sendak raised an eyebrow, approaching her.

“And you wouldn’t lie to me, would you?” He smiled, pressing the point against her stomach. She breathed shallowy, shaking her head. “And you know what happens if you lie to me?”

She took a shaky breath, attempting to find any space to move away from Sendak. He pushed the blade into her abdomen, and Pidge screamed.

. . . . . . . . .

“Hunk, buddy,” Lance yawned, cracking his neck as he took in his surroundings. The two were in a cell clearly meant for three- the third set of shackles being a dead giveaway.

“What,” the Samoan responded, attempting to get into a more comfortable position. “Listen Lance, we’ve been captured by the Galra and I really, really don’t want to be here. So if you have a plan to get us out, I will do it,”

“I was just going to ask how you were feeling,” the blue paladin sighed, eyeing the door. “Looks like just the two of us got captured, I’m glad the others got out in time,”

“Aside from being chained in an alien prison where we could be tortured- I’m doing pretty fine,” he mumbled.

A scream pierced through their thoughts as it echoed through the walls. 

“Oh my god what if we’re next,” Hunk paled. 

“Relax, it… it may just be some prisoner who tried to escape and got caught- if we escape, we won’t get caught, okay?” Lance reassured.

“I hope we get out of here soon,” Hunk sighed, leaning against the wall.

. . . . . . . . . . 

Pidge bit back a whimper as the knife was slowly pulled out, coughing as blood bubbled up her throat. 

The druid approached her, pressing their hand against the wound. They began to glow a faint purple, and it seeped into the area, healing it over. Pidge screamed as it began to burn, the feeling of acid slipping through her internal organs causing her to struggle against her restraints.

“Good. Now,” Sendak paused, picking up a long metal pole that fanned out into a large block at the end. “You belong to the empire,”

“What,” Pidge spoke, struggling harder against the restraints holding her down. Sendak approached, ripping the flight suit in the abdominal area. 

She was breathing heavily, but the cuffs held her down firmly. He powered on the rod, purple lights shooting down the length of it and pooling at the bottom. 

It was brought down on her stomach, and Pidge could only scream as fire shot through her system. She arched her back, screaming in agony.

Tears were streaming down her face, uncontrollable groans and hisses of pain slipping through her lips. The rod was pulled away, and the green paladin bit her lip as she looked down.

There, in a deep black, was the Galra Empire’s symbol. 

It was seared into her skin, a little blood dripping from an area that had burned through the protective layer of skin. 

Sendak kneeler at her side, brushing away her hair so he could whisper in her ear.

“You belong to the empire. There is no escape,”

Her world went dark.

. . . . . . . . .

Lance observed as Hunk was shifting in his cuffs, getting closer to figuring out how to get out of the cuffs. 

“I really don’t know about you, but I’m starting to get really scared, man,” Hunk rambled, continuing to struggle. “I mean for the past who knows how many hours, someone has been screaming their head off,”

“We’ll bust out of here and save them, then,” Lance responded, gazing towards the door. The captive’s screams died down, and then stopped completely. 

“I think if I can get something in between here- where the cuffs meet the chain, I can bust out of being confined and worry about the actual cuffs back at the castle,” Hunk mumbled.

The door to their cell slid open, and Lance’s head snapped up to look at their captor.

Sendak.

“What do you want,” he spat with fury in his eyes. The Galra were ruthless, and he knew if he acted out more Sendak would hurt him instead of Hunk.

“We’re simply returning your friend,” he spoke, stepping aside as two guards walked forward with a limp body tossed over one of their shoulders, the other holding a blaster. 

“What do you mean, we were the only two captured?” Hunk questioned.

“She was very adamant about being taken instead of the blue one. A shame too, I bet he would have lasted longer,” he sighed. The body was thrown onto the ground.

They didn’t even bother to restrain her as the door slid shut with a hiss.

“Pidge?” Hunk’s voice was barely above a whisper. “Holy shit, Pidge,” 

Lance had the most give in his restraints, so he reached and pulled the girl closer to him. 

“Ay, dios mio- what the fuck did they do to you?” He muttered under his breath, tracing over the dried blood that ran from her chin to her chest. Crimson was dried at the corner of her lips, her fingers a deep purple with splashes of blue and red. 

Her stomach was caked with blood, the Galra insignia clearly burned into her flesh while a pink scar symbolized a carelessly healed over knife wound.

He squeezed her shoulder gently, watching as her nose scrunched in discomfort.

“Hey Pidge- you okay?” Hunk asked from across the room, making his own observation of her injuries.

She groaned, eyes fluttering open.

Those honey eyes once filled with bright intellect and passion were dulled and rimmed with red, tear streaks dried on her pale face. 

“La..n..Lance?” She mumbled, her voice hoarse.

It had not been a random alien.

It had been Pidge.

“Pidge- can you stay awake for me? Are you okay?” He gently spoke, helping her lay down flatly on her back.

“I dunno, loverboy…” she droned, looking at him in the eyes. “Do I look okay?”

“Jesus fucking Christ, no, you do not look okay! This is not okay!” Hunk yelled, breaking the gentle silence.

“There’s your answer, then,” she weakly chuckled, wincing at the pain it brought her.

“Why?” Was all the blue paladin could ask.

“He was gonna take you,” she responded. “He was gonna torture you and you were still unconscious and you’re like.. the glue of our team,”

“And?” He raised an eyebrow. 

“And I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I didn’t stop them,” she blinked, a frown forming on her face. “I’m.. really tired. It hurts,” 

“Sleep, Pidge,” Hunk interrupted. “You’ll need it. They’ll be here for either me or Lance next..” 

“No,” she interjected. “No, they already broke me. I slipped. I’m sorry,” she began to cry, a cacophony of sorries slipping into the uncomfortable silence.

“What do you mean?” The Cuban asked.

“I told them where the Castle is,” she whispered with shame. “I’m.. I’m sorry they were going to kill you and I couldn’t-“

“Shush, it’s okay,” Hunk soothed.

“No it isn’t! I- I’m putting us all in jeopardy! Fuck- I just hope they kill me, I can’t be a paladin after I just put all of the others in danger,” her voice was cracking, blood beginning to dribble down her chin.

“Stop it, Pidge! You were only trying to save us,” Lance reasoned, brushing a hand through her chestnut hair. “They tortured you, of course you want it to end,”

“Shiro or Keith wouldn’t break, they would endure it- you and Hunk are strong and you’d get through it! It only took me ten broken fingers and a fucking threat,” she cried.

“Just get some rest, you’ll need it,” The blue paladin soothed.

Her sobs died down, and her eyes fluttered closed. 

. . . . . . . . . 

A day later Sendak returned, his guards grabbing Pidge as Lance and Hunk screamed countless profanities in his direction.

A gunshot to Pidge’s thigh was enough to shut them up. 

She hissed in pain as she was brought back to the torture room, the table still caked in her blood. She was pushed down, and attempted to fight against the restraints to no avail.

The druid appeared, a syringe in hand. 

“What do you want? I already told you where the castle is!” She screamed, pulling at the cuffs.

Without warning, the druid pushed the needle into her neck, and Pidge could only shriek as it burned and stung, continuing to struggle as she clenched her eyes shut.

She opened her eyes, and Sendak had brought in a prisoner.

It was no stranger.

It was her brother, father, and mother.

“No! Let go of them!” She bucked against the table. “They didn’t do anything, this isn’t fair!”

“Katie, you failed us,” her mother’s voice wavered, her head shaking in disapproval. Her father nodded in agreement, meanwhile Matt looked at her with a betrayed gaze.

“I’m sorry!” The green paladin cried, hissing as her squirming pulled at her shoulder. “I’m sorry, I’m trying!”

“It’s not enough,” was all Matt said as a gunshot sounded, the bolt piercing through his heart.

Two more bolts.

Two more thuds.

Two more bodies.

One more Holt.

She screamed in protest, the bodies disappearing from her vision as another syringe was pushed into her neck. She was coughing, sputtering nonsense- tears streaming down her face.

“My family! You- you took my family,” she broke down. She didn’t even notice as two Galran officers placed a collar around her neck, she was too busy trying to breathe.

She had to breathe.

Why?

Because she had a role.

Did she?

She was a paladin of Voltron.

Was.

She was too broken.

Yes.

She screamed as an electrical current ran through her body, her limbs spasming in response. It burned, it brought searing pain through her pain receptors.

But she deserved it.

She failed.

She continued to scream, her spasms growing more uncontrollable and dangerous. She had bucked against the table numerous times, back arching as she hissed and winced.

But it didn’t stop.

And then it did.

“Tell me the weaknesses of all the paladins,” Sendak demanded. She spat on the ground, chest heaving as her body continued to spasm. 

“N..no,” she coughed, shrieking as another jolt shot through her body.

Her cuffs were removed and she was tumbling forward, her leg seizing suddenly and she found herself unable to stand on her own.

Two sets of strong arms dragged her across the room. She was pushed onto the floor, her ankles tied together along with her wrists.

They were chained to the ground, her arms above her head. She squirmed, but felt and saw no danger. The ground beneath the small of her back began to rise from the floor, arching her body uncomfortably.

It continued, and she screamed as she felt her arms stretch in a way they shouldn’t. The pillar didn’t cease to rise, only causing more pain and discomfort for the green paladin.

Her arms were being stretched further than they should, her ligaments threatening to tear.

There was a sickening crack and a scream as her bone broke, followed by an agonizing flare of pain. Her muscles were ripping alongside the ligaments, and seconds later her shoulders were dislocated.

She could only scream as her hips soon suffered the same fate.

Her stomach was high up, her body growing stiff as the rising finally stopped. She was arched in an extremely vulnerable, and not to mention an uncomfortable position.

Sendak approached with his blade, and Pidge couldn’t even move her arms or twist her hips in an attempt to get away.

She was stuck.

The blade was dragged along the side of her stomach, constant slices that grew bigger and deeper as they grew in number.

Blood was pouring from the wounds, and Pidge was left whimpering with each slice of the blade.

Sendak frowned, and began cutting away the remnants of her flight suit until she was left in her sports bra and shorts.

He brought the blade down on her arm, continuing his series of cuts on the outer side of her arms.

She grimaced with each slice, whimpers and groans of pain slipping through her lips.

She just wished that he’d go on the inside and hit a major artery- then she could die and it’d be over.

But that meant putting Hunk or Lance in her place.

She pushed away the embrace of death, instead focusing on breathing once again.

His cuts stopped, and the blade was shoved into the bullet wound, and this time he didn’t remove it.

There was a jolt as the ship rocked, a sound of blasters and footsteps echoing through the hallway. Sendak huffed and picked up a gag, pushing it into Pidge’s mouth and fastening it behind her head.

He then left the room, leaving the green paladin vulnerable and dripping with crimson.

. . . . . . . .

Lance looked up as the door was kicked open, Shiro standing in the doorway and breathing heavily. He darted towards Lance, melting through the cuffs holding him down like butter. 

He did the same for Hunk, helping him stand up.

“I got Lance and Hunk, Keith, what’s your status on Pidge?” He spoke into his comm. 

“Close, just fighting off some guards right now. Looks like Sendak and his druid abandoned ship,” Keith replied, the sounds of a fight slipping into the silence.

“Okay. You two, let’s get to Black,” Shiro curtly nodded, ignoring Lance’s whines of protest and dragging them to where his lion was docked.

Keith impaled the final sentry, pulling out his bayard and watching it crumble to the ground with electrical sparks sprouting from his target. He approached the door, resting his hand on the print scanner.

The door slid open, and he rushed in.

The first thing he noticed was the table in the center of the room, blood splayed across the metal surface.

The second thing he noticed was the body in the corner of the room.

He almost wished that this was not their green paladin. 

Her wrists and ankles were shackled to the ground, a pillar in the ground pushing her midsection higher in the air. Her arms were clearly broken, shoulders dislocated as well.

Her stomach was branded with the symbol for the Galra Empire, a knife crudely stuck into her thigh meanwhile blood oozed from her arms and stomach.

A gag was tied around her mouth, and her eyes were clenched shut.

The red paladin rushed forward, looking for a way to lower the platform so she could relax while he removed her restraints. 

“Pidge?” He spoke, her eyes blinking open as a response. They were clouded, fear and exhaustion taking its toll on the small girl. 

She mumbled something, but it was muffled by the gag. He untied it, tossing it carelessly onto the ground. He found a lever behind her, and pulling down on it caused the pillar to slowly descend into the floor.

She screamed as her arm lowered, and Keith bit his lip.

Once she was flat on the ground, he untied her wrists and popped her shoulders into place, wincing as she writhed and screamed. Once that was finished, he untied her ankles and took another survey at her injuries.

Removing the blade right now would prove to be risky, and she was already losing a lot of blood with the series of slices running down the length of her exposed skin on her stomach and arms.

He picked her up, making a run for the Red Lion.

He gently placed her on the ground, taking a seat in the pilot chair and swiftly maneuvering Red back to the castle.

The journey was quick, thanks to his Lion’s speed capabilities. He docked in his hangar, picking up the green paladin and bringing her to the med bay.

Hunk was seated on a cot as Coran rubbed an ointment on his chafed wrists.

Upon entering, all eyes were on Keith. The Red Paladin called for Coran, who paled once he got sight of Pidge’s injuries.

“Dios mio,” Lance breathed, rushing to her side. Her eyes were completely shut, and she had most likely passed out from the pain.

A healing suit was pulled over her body, and Coran quickly typed something into the database as a pod rose up. Pidge was placed into it, and he turned back to the others.

“She should be out in a few quintants,” he announced, the worried glances the remaining paladins exchanged only etched with worry.

. . . . . . . .

Two days later, Pidge came tumbling out of the pod and into Lance’s open embrace. Hunk was at his side, and he joined in the hug.

“How are you feeling?” Lance asked, looking at how dull her eyes appeared.

“I’m fine,” she mumbled, pushing back against the hug. “All better,”

“Pidge, it’s okay to not be okay,” Hunk frowned, leading her to the stairs and wrapping her in a blanket. She leaned into his chest, eyes unblinking.

“I’m sorry,” was all she whispered.

“Pidge, it’s okay, if anything we should be the ones apologizing,” Lance sighed, brushing his fingers through her hair.

“Why? It’s all my fault. It’s my fault my family is dead- they were there. Sendak killed all of them. My mom, my dad-“ her breath hitched. “Matt… it’s all my fault. I’m a horrible paladin and a horrible human being and I know a sorry won’t cut it but I just-“

“No, nope, not doing this,” Lance shushed her. “Your family is okay, Pidge. I don’t know what they did to you after they took you away, but Matt is with the rebels and your mom and dad are safe on Earth,” 

“H-how do you know that?” She breathed.

“Do you want to call Matt?” Hunk suggested, sharing a look with Lance.

“I… yeah. I’d like that,”


End file.
